Klee: First things first, trophy girls are not trophy girls in cycling

Tejay van Garderen gets a kiss from Courtney James (left) and Heidi Golzing (right) after putting on the yellow jersey for the second day in the row in the USA Pro Challenge in Colorado Springs, Colorado on Thursday, August 21, 2014. (The Gazette/Jerilee Bennett)

"They come by you so fast that you feel the wind blow in your face," Axel said.

Talk about a cycling career highlight: At Thursday's race, Axel met the cyclist for whom he is named - Axel Mercx, the man who founded Bissell Racing.

"He was so cool," the younger Axel said.

The smile hanging across Axel's face offered convincing proof. Now tell me about the cowbell hanging from your dad's arm?

"We're from Switzerland," said his father, Yann Ulrich. "When you're from Switzerland, you have a big cowbell."

Here's something else about cycling I didn't know: It's noisy. For a sport with engine-less vehicles, cycling races are louder than the beer tent at happy hour. The only thing cyclists love more than whistles are car horns. And cowbells. Cowbells for days.

"You need a cowbell," Yann said.

I need a map. Street closures also are popular in cycling. Thursday's circuit was 17 miles long. It closed roughly 117 streets. The only motorists unaffected by the course were those offering support in the race. On one stretch of Colorado Avenue, 12 cyclists sped past. They were trailed by a Lexus, Audi, BMW and a BMW motorcycle. (Cycling teams, we learned, don't drive lemons.) Moments later, the next pack of 30-something cyclists sped past. I counted another 28 fancy cars, followed by another eight ambulances and police cars. It seemed there was a car for every rider.

"GET OFF THE ROAD!" a course marshal suggested, politely.

Cycling is not for dummies, so I took the marshal's advice.

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Twitter: @Klee_Gazette

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